This Fire Burns
by KiwiStar
Summary: *For Neurotic-Idealist* Even through the darkest days, this fire burns, always...No matter what, he'll never stop loving her. CM Punk/Ashley Massaro


**This oneshot is for Neurotic-Idealist:) She wrote me a oneshot, so I decided to return the favor and write her a oneshot. lol. Plus she has helped me by giving me some advice, she's a great, fun person to talk to,lol. I own nothing and the people in this oneshot own themselves. Please read, review, and enjoy:)**

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Punk sighed as he thought about Ashley. He couldn't believe how lonely it was without her. Ever since her departure from the company a while ago, the entire WWE seemed like it was missing something. She left, packing up her duffel bag and bidding the WWE a farewell. Her presence had infected the WWE, coursing through it and bringing a spunky aura that seemed to make everybody around her happier. People grew accustomed to the punk style she donned everyday and the usual smile that came with it.

God, her smile. It dazzled like a million diamonds reflecting the light from the sun and melted his heart to a puddle every time she flashed it at him. Her piercing and black/pink streaked hair just added to her beauty. Ashley was one of the women who looked gorgeous regardless of what they were wearing, but preferred jeans and a t-shirt. He got lost in the radiance of her eyes more times than he could possibly count and ever since the first day they met, they became the best of friends. They did practically everything together and the memories flashed in his head.

"_Phil, Phil, PHIL!" Her laughter rang out as he picked her up and twirled her around. It was her birthday and he had been the first one to greet her, much to her annoyance. She had insisted on not celebrating her birthday, but Phil just wouldn't have that. No, to him it would've been a crime to not celebrate his best friend's birthday. AS he left her down, she smacked his chest. "Phil." Her voice trying to be stern, but little giggles still passed her lips. "What is wrong with you?"_

"_I like birthdays." He stated simply with a small shrug as he tossed his arm over her shoulder. "So…how old are you now? 50?"_

_That earned him another smack to the chest. "I'm 28."_

"_My bad. So, what do you have planned for the day, Ms. Massaro?"_

"_Sitting around, gathering dust and waiting for this day to pass."_

"_Why do you resent your birthday?" He questioned, finding it utterly ridiculous that she hated this particular day out of them all._

"_Because, I'm getting older, that's why. And I'm alone. Another year has passed boyfriendless."_

"_You don't need a boyfriend, Ash." He pointed out, biting his lip to keep himself from blurting out that he could be her boyfriend. _

"_Well, at least you think so." She sighed and he knew that the subject was done and over with._

He had been there for her, through everything. Through her breakup with Matt, and Paul, through the people who called her horrible names and tried to put her down, through her injuries and anything she needed him for. Phil remembered all the times he wiped away her tears and pulled her into his arms, murmuring that everything would be alright.

_Ashley ran down the hall, tears blinding her vision as she made her escape. She was trying to run away from all the pain that had followed her, all the sorrow that groped at her whenever she thought everything would be alright. Blindly running, she felt herself run into somebody. The same person quickly scooped her into his arms before she fell completely. The man pulled her against him and hugged her tightly, but not hurting her, as she cried into his shoulder._

"_Ash? What's wrong?"_

"_He was cheating on me." She replied, sniffling._

_His body clenched. Paul had cheated on her…"I'm gonna."_

"_No, Phil, don't hurt hi. It was probably my fault."_

"_No, Ash, it wasn't your fault. You deserve so much better than him anyway." He stated firmly, forcing back his anger as he stroked the trembling blonds hair. Tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, he swiped the tears away. "Sweetheart, you can do better than him, you don't need him. He's the one missing out, he lost the most brilliant and amazing girl today."_

_Ashley smiled. "You really think so?"_

"_No, I know so." He stated as he pulled her close again and walked with her down the hall._

For years, he had been trying, struggling to muster some morsel of courage to ask her out, yet every time he got remotely close, he chickened out. The day she told him she was leaving was the day he was finally going to tell her.

_He approached her silently and stealthily, like a lion stalking its prey. She sat so oblivious in her computer chair and he just couldn't pass up the opportunity. Her head was bobbing as her iPod blared music and she read a book. Phil choked back a chuckle as he moved to stand behind her. Abruptly, he stood, placing his hands on her shoulders and yelling. "Hey Ash!"_

_She yelped and spun around to face him. "Yes, Philly Cheese Steak?"_

_Phil pouted. "I hate that nickname."_

_She stuck her tongue out at him. "Too bad. Phil, I need tot ell you something." She stated sincerely, all traces of joking gone. He nodded._

"_I need to tell you something too."_

"_You go first." She urged._

"_No…you go, ladies first." He smiled as she did and nodded again._

"_If you insist…I'm leaving, Phil." She stated and his face fell. Millions of thoughts raced through his head. Maybe she was joking, maybe this was a cruel prank, or maybe it was just a huge misunderstanding._

"_W-What?" he asked, his jaw dropping. "Where are you going?"_

"_I-I'm leaving the WWE, Phil…" She trailed off and he could see tears welling within her eyes. He hated it when she cried, it always darkened his day whenever she was sad. Kneeling down so he was level with her, he gently wiped the tear away. _

"_I don't understand…" He replied quietly. It was true, he really didn't understand. Ashley leaving the WWE? It just didn't seem right. She loved the company, and the fans, and her coworkers. Why would she leave?_

"_Phil, my daughter…she's sick and I need to take care of her." Ashley responded and he nodded. He had heard that her daughter had fallen ill, and he knew it was getting serious. He took in a breath as she wrapped her arms around his neck and his slid around her waist, hugging her to him. "Phil?"_

"_It'll be alright, Ash. I'll be alright." His heart fell as his hopes shattered. He couldn't believe it, it just wasn't right. Ashley was meant for the WWE, but she was the kindest person he knew. She'd drop everything and anything for her daughter, even her career. "When do you leave?"_

"_In an hour, I was just waiting for you so I could say goodbye." She mumbled against his neck and he shut his eyes tightly, forcing back the tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes. In a couple hours, his punk angel would be gone. A couple hours wasn't enough to culminate every single warr memory into a farewell that filled all the cracks and left no words unspoken. His time was limited, cut short unexpectedly. _

_Ashley pulled back a little and Phil helped her stand up. "God, I'm sorry for crying, Phil…"_

"_You don't need to apologize." He replied, still trying to process the news she had given him._

"_So, what did you need to tell me?"_

_He froze, suddenly remembered why he was there in the first place. He was there to tell her he loved her, but he couldn't tell her that now and he wished he had chosen to speak first. "Nothing, it was nothing. Don't worry about it. Um, have a safe flight, I gotta go…Vince called a meeting." He quickly fibbed. She nodded with understanding and leaned up to kiss his cheek. _

"_Thanks, Phil, for being there for me all the time." she whispered and he nodded as she grabbed her suitcase and walked out of the locker room. He exited after her and watched her as she walked out of the arena, pack up her car and peel out of the parking lot._

And then she was gone. Gone for almost two years now and every moment still stung him like a thousand needles. The voice at the back of his head taunted him daily, reminding him that he should've told her and then maybe he'd be with her right now. But no, he wasn't anywhere near Ashley, no matter how much his heart and head wanted him to be.

Ever since her departure, he had tried relentlessly to get over her, but he never could. No, Ashley was permanently stuck in his head, all the memories burned into his mind. He had went on dates, tried to maintain a girlfriend, but none of them held a candle to Ashley. Nobody could replace or match his punk angel, his sweet and honest Ashley that stole his heart and flew away with it. She was probably in New York, living life with her daughter and probably a new boyfriend.

Phil sighed and shuffled down the hall. His career had skyrocketed through being a face and being loved by damn near everybody, to swindling down to a self-righteous heel who became target practice for little kids with straw wrappers. Even though it was all storyline, his own personal misery had taken a hold of him and held him captive from his friends. In short, he was lonely without her. She was his main friend, his last lifeline against the world he had become estranged from. His days were dark now, Ashley used to be his sunshine, his golden ray of hope against the shadows.

He did everything for Ashley and since she was gone, his hope slipped away. He didn't care anymore, about anything. His storylines had been the concoction of Vince being mad at him. After all, the fans hated him, why not make them hate him even more. The only thing he did was torture Jeff Hardy, then eradicated him from the WWE; yeah, that was the kind of thing that got fans to hate you…

His beard was grown out to an outrageous length, considering it was Phil. He always kept it neat and very small, that was how Ashley liked it. He remembered how he had grown it out once way back then when Ashley was still around, but out due to an injury. Phil had grown it out, just to see her reaction and when she saw him, she practically pushed him into the bathroom to shave, claiming it made him look absolutely horrifying, a comment he rolled his eyes to, but complied with her wishes anyways. Never again had he grown his beard out this far, but since Ashley wasn't there, he figured he might as well do things he wouldn't normally do.

Sighing, Phil muttered something to himself as he entered his locker room and threw his bag down onto the ground. Running a hand through his hair, he was about to go through the same routine as always. Get ready, go down, be a jerk on national television, then come back, shower, go to the hotel, go to bed, get up and repeat. As he was about to pull off his shirt, a familiar voice caught his attention. At first, he thought it was Serena, but no, it was much, much to familiar.

"So, you're Grizzly Adams now?"

He glanced up to see Ashley standing there, a smile spread across her face as she outstretched her arms for a hug. Phil was frozen in place, figuring it must be a dream. There was no way that Ashley was here, standing in his locker room after all this time. "A-Ashley?"

"Yes, Philly Cheese, c'mon, don't just stand there." She pouted impatiently and he slowly walked up to her and hugged her. "God, I missed you Phil."

"I missed you too, Ash." He murmured and she smiled. "I need to tell you what I was going to tell you before you left."

"Yeah?" Ashley asked.

"I love you, I've loved you for years and I still love you."

"I-I love you too, Phil. That's why I came here…I needed to tell you, I was just…afraid." She replied with a small sigh. "Matt told me about the slump you've been in, are you alright?"

"I am now." He stated. "It was dark without you Ash, and I almost lost hope, but my love for you never died, not even a little."

She smiled and leaned up to kiss him, but stopped as she saw his face. Cringing, she stepped back down. "Oh my…what is this?" She gestured to the beard. "You love me, right?"

He nodded, now believing that this wasn't a dream and was actually happening. "Yes, of course."

"Then do me a favor and shave." She pleaded jokingly as she kissed him. As she pulled back, she reached into his bag, pulled out shaving cream and a razor and pushed them into his chest. "I'm serious, go shave it."

He took the objects and walked back to the shower area, a large smile crossing his face. Everything would be alright now, the darkest days were over and he finally had Ashley back.

_Even through the darkest days, this fire burns, always._


End file.
